Application of Artificial Intelligence in Cultural Heritage Conservation and Dissemination: A Systematic Survey

Cultural heritage is one of the major national and collective indicators of identity. It has historical, artistic, and social aspects. Nevertheless, heritage objects are becoming increasingly affected by environmental degradation, climate change, rapid urbanization, and armed conflict which make the need for new and large-scale preservation methods very urgent. Artificial intelligence (AI) in recent years has become a significant facilitator of the heritage conservation, documentation, interpretation, and dissemination processes. This paper details a comprehensive review of current AI deployment in the area of cultural heritage, focusing on the practices of conservation of cultural heritage, archaeological analysis, digital reconstruction, museum engagement, and public dissemination. The review compiles recent scholarly writings on the topic and discusses the implementation of machine learning, deep learning, computer vision, remote sensing, digital twins, and user-centered AI in different heritage contexts. Besides discussing technical aspects, the survey also covers ethical, cultural, and societal aspects (like authenticity, transparency, inclusiveness, and AI governance in heritage practice) which will be critically analyzed, and the arguments for and against AI technologies in preservation practices will be highlighted. By classifying current research into topical and application-based categories, this research points out the dominant methodological practices, the areas of research that need more attention, and new paths for investigation that will soon be opened up. The study results show that AI is no longer a mere technical tool and more and more takes on the role of a socio-technical mediator that influences the interpretation of heritage, the making of decisions, and the engagement of the public. On one hand, AI-powered methods present substantial benefits for the documentation, conservation predictions, and access improvements; on the other hand, they come with the problems of explainability, cultural representation, and sustainability over time.